Outcomes of the General Meeting of 16th October 2025 were communicated to the Vice Chancellor shortly after its conclusion.

Your Local Association has now received a response which you can read here.

Dear colleague

The consultative ballot on the higher education pay and working conditions offer 2024/25 is now open. Please look out for an email containing your unique link to vote from Civica Election Services.

Please register here for an online Q&A session (today, Tuesday 12 November, 15:00-17:00) with the higher education national negotiators regarding the final offer. This will be an important opportunity for you to ask any questions you may have about both the offer and the negotiation process.

For more information:

• click here for a short video about this consultative ballot 
• click here for reports from HE officers and the negotiators, as well as publicity materials
• click here for a detailed FAQ addressing practical issues.

A General Meeting of the UCU Bradford University Local Association took place at 12 noon.   Presentation slides can be viewed here. 

Main topics for consideration and motions were: 

• The protection of jobs 

• Workload model 

• Workplace Stress 

Questions from the Floor 

In addition to the topics covered in the motions, there were some questions from the floor in relation to the recent announcements of further job cuts. 

These were addressed under AOB as well as an overview of the Organisational Change process that UCU would be engaged in. 

Motions for Debate 

The following motions were considered at the meeting which was quorate throughout: 

Motion 1 – Protecting Jobs and Terms & Conditions: 

The motion was proposed by Zak Hughes and seconded by Steve Hickey. 

UCU Bradford LA resolves to call upon management to:  

• Make further reductions to the CapEx programmes to meet the budget deficit  

• Commit unequivocally to a policy of no compulsory or forced redundancies  

• Adopt MARS levels of compensation in any voluntary severance scheme to ensure fairness and equity, in particular for those who had previously shown commitment to their employer despite the opportunities presented through MARS, and those whose applications to MARS had been declined.  

In addition, members resolve: 

• To endorse the branch committee to launch a formal dispute if the committee believes the actions of the employer warrant such a step. 

Motion 1 was carried with no votes against and 2 abstentions. 

Motion 2 – Workload 

The motion was Proposed by Dawn Clarke and seconded by Barbara McNamara 

UCU Bradford LA Resolves: 

• To call upon the employer to restate its commitment to the recognition agreement, and give assurance that all matters relating to pay, conditions and working practices are appropriately negotiated in accordance with that agreement.  

• To call upon the employer to enter meaningful negotiations over a new and more representative framework.  

• To call upon the employer to withdraw any workload models that have been undertaken using the non-negotiated workload handbook. 

Motion 2 was carried with no votes against and no abstentions. 

Motion 3 – Stress Risk Assessment 

The motion was proposed by Sarah George and seconded by Steve Hickey. 

UCU Bradford LA resolves that management must:  

• Ensure that stress risk assessments are employed proactively and at a departmental / team level  

• Ensure that stress risk assessments are not used in a  
  coercive or bullying manner to those already suffering from stress  

• Ensure that regular catch-up meetings with managers are  
  supportive and, in a format, and frequency that is mutually agreed with the employee  

• Provide clarity to employees about who will see stress risk  
  assessments and include a mandatory requirement for written consent before sharing any part of an assessment. 

Motion 3 was carried with no votes against and no abstentions. 

Any Other Business 

Job Cuts: 

Q1 Any thoughts on if we may have compulsory redundancies? 

A1 Compulsory redundancy was mentioned as a possible course of action by the CFO at the assembly of 15^th October.   UCU believes that there is often little if any difference between compulsory and so called ‘voluntary’ severance/redundancy.   These are merely legal terms, with management keen to avoid compulsory due to the legal obligations associated with that.   In both cases severance is almost inevitably forced. As outlined in motion 1 above the branch position is to oppose any forced redundancies.  

Q2 If so, will staff be given warning and told so we can take voluntary redundancies? I guess not, but the VC did say she wanted to be transparent. 

A2 At this stage we know very little about the proposals in terms of the planned approach or magnitude of job losses.   We would expect that there will be some discussions around local restructuring; the branch would be concerned if losses will be targeted and not through the adoption of an “equal pain across the institution” approach. 

Q3 What happens if I don’t take voluntary redundancies then I get compulsory? Can they just restructure and make several people apply for one job? 

A3 We hope that redundancies are based on a robust and coherent restructuring plan.   If, for example, a team is reduced from 3 to 2 one would expect that there would be an opportunity for redeployment or to volunteer for redundancy to make the reduction.   If there is no volunteer then there would be a process of recruitment ringfenced to the individuals, after which the unsuccessful candidate would return to the options of redeployment or redundancy. 

There is in addition a process known as ‘matching and slotting’ where candidates may be placed in the new structure when they meet 70% or more of the required attributes for the new role and there is no other candidate. 

Q4 Re redundancies, how much will they pay out if I have been here for 19 years 14 of them have been part time? 

A4 In the case of a voluntary arrangement the employer has full control of what is being offered, although in past rounds of voluntary redundancies at UoB typically the calculation will mirror the statutory framework set out for compulsory arrangements. 

It should be noted however that MARS deviated from this approach with a flat rate compensation payment equal to 6 months’ salary; we call for a similar approach to redundancy. 

The compulsory scheme currently allows for 1 week for every year of service (pro-rata for part time working) or 1½ weeks for years of service over the age of 41.   You may further be entitled to payment in lieu of notice (PILON) and you should check your contract of employment for that, and payment of any outstanding leave.   Note that the employer may require you to work notice and take leave rather than make additional payments. 

Q5 Can they change my job (reduce responsibilities and give them to other staff with less experience) then argue I’m not needed? 

A5 Technically that is a restructuring.   Your role is in effect removed as indeed are the roles of those other staff, and new roles (perhaps fewer of them) created.   See answer to Q3 for how that should be managed. 

Q6 Is MARS being revisited/re-opened? 

A6 We understand that some MARS applications that were declined either by the applicant or management may be revisited on a case-by-case basis.   We do not at this stage believe that there is a plan to re-open MARS or launch a new phase of that scheme. 

Organisational Change 

Under the organisational change policy, management are obliged to properly consult both collectively and individually over any planned restructuring. 

Collective Consultation 

We would expect to be consulted as a part of that, and we persistently call for early inclusion in the process of developing a plan rather than being presented with a fait accompli.   The reality is that the latter is the normal format for consultation. 

UCU would expect to be invited to any meetings with teams of staff during the process of consultation. 

Individual Consultation 

UCU will endeavor to provide support to members if they are called to meet individually with management. 

We anticipate significant demand for representation however, which means that the branch may find it challenging to accompany all members to individual consultations.   Members are strongly advised to take someone with them (a colleague or friend) who can take notes of the proceedings, and in doing so ensure that nothing is missed. 

Members are asked to consider volunteering to accompany colleagues over this demanding period.   If you are interested, please email ucusupport@bradford.ac.uk with your name and contact details.

Artificial intelligence technologies are already being used within higher and further education, impacting on your working lives and the education of students.

It is crucial we shape the impact of these technologies on education in a way that works for both staff and students, mitigating the risks they could pose.

UCU’s Future of Work in Post-16 Education Working Group is considering the threats and opportunities of these technologies and needs to understand how members and branches are approaching them.

Members are encouraged to complete the following survey. Your responses will help the working group to understand from members’ perspective the uses, benefits and threats of AI-driven education technologies. This will in turn help UCU to provide the appropriate support to members and branches, and to develop the appropriate policy for UCU on Artificial Intelligence.

AI Member Survey

‘UCU sends its heartfelt condolences to the victims and loved ones of the atrocious attack in Southport last week. The local community needs the support and space to heal and come together after those tragic events.

‘Fascist thugs have instead exploited this tragedy to launch racist and Islamophobic violence across England. We send our solidarity to all those under attack, including the many Black and Asian people who were assaulted, as well as international students and staff who will rightly be worried for their safety.

‘We applaud all those who joined the many protests against the far right. We encourage UCU members and all trade unionists to continue to stand against them and to offer support to local mosques and community groups. When doing so, please remain vigilant, look after each other and travel in groups.

‘The racism we have seen did not occur in a vacuum. It is the result of decades of emboldening anti-migrant racism by Britain’s political and media class. Those who have stoked far-right rhetoric are culpable and must now face consequences. The government needs to tackle both the anti-migrant rhetoric spewed by segments of the press and end its own pandering to racist panics about refugees.’

Jo Grady
UCU general secretary

The EGM was called to complete the business of the AGM of 3rd July and to update members on any issued flowing from the latest meeting of the Trade Union University Group (TUUG) that took place on the morning of the EGM.

The meeting was well attended and there was a healthy discussion over Motions 1 to 3.

Motion 4 was remitted for consideration at a forthcoming EGM to allow more time for a full debate.

UCU rejects UCEA pay offer

UCU has rejected UCEA’s pay offer of 2.5% reported Times Higher. Speaking to the paper and Research Professional, UCU general secretary Jo Grady said: ‘The ball is now in the employers’ court to make further improvements.’

Gaza protestors targeted by police

Universities have been collaborating with police to spy on pro-Palestine student protestors reported The Metro. Speaking to the paper, UCU described the findings as disturbing: ‘Evidence of university managers collaborating with the police to target, monitor, and potentially criminalise their own students for peacefully protesting against genocide should ring alarm bells,’

Nottingham and Birmingham universities went to court to try to remove pro-Palestine student encampments and The Guardian has reported the high court has ruled the students can be evicted.

Labour wins general election

In response to Labour winning the general election, Jo Grady told Chemistry World it was the result trade unionists needed after “14 long years of Tory misrule.”
Jo told FE Week that Labour must treat the teacher pay gap as a day-one priority to “show it cares about further education”.
Now Labour has won, Lord Wharton has quit as chair of the Office for Students. This follows a damning report last year from a House of Lords committee slamming the higher education regulator’s political independence. Speaking to The Independent at the time, Jo Grady called on Wharton to resign.

UCU calls out Cass Review for ‘serious methodological flaws’

UCU’s NEC unanimously voted to adopt a motion which claims that the landmark Cass Review into gender identity services for young people, published in April, “falls short of the standard of rigorous and ethical research expected of research professionals” and “provides no evidence for the ‘new approach’ it recommends”, reported Times Higher.

Speaking to The Times and Times Higher, UCU said the union was “an unequivocal supporter of trans rights, a position established and repeatedly endorsed by our annual congress”.

“This motion was brought by our members after listening to concerns about the Cass report from the trans community, including LGBTQ charities such as Mermaids and Stonewall.
“Our union will proudly work with trans-led organisations to resist any recommendations that could harm young trans people and will pressure the government for an approach to trans healthcare that affirms and centres the trans community.”

Goldsmiths ‘determined’ to close Black British literature course

Goldsmiths, University of London has been accused of being “determined” to close its Black British literature course, reported The Guardian after provisional redundancy notices were issued to 97 academic staff across 11 university departments, including the co-founder of the course.

Goldsmiths UCU executive committee member Catherine Rottenberg told the Guardian: “What’s clear to me is that the media pressure worked initially to get them to at least commit to not closing the programme completely, but what’s also clear is that they’re determined to close these programmes.”

A sociology professor at Goldsmiths told Research Professional she has lost her faith in academic meritocracy after receiving a redundancy letter and The Stage has reported that Dramaturgs, academics and students have criticised redundancies affecting Goldsmiths, University of London’s theatre and arts departments, calling them symptomatic of a “severance” of the arts education pipeline.

Glasgow University pay-day chaos

University of Glasgow staff have been left ‘concerned’ after waking to find their wages missing from bank accounts, reported Yahoo News. Speaking to the outlet, UCU Scotland official Mary Senior said: “We know of around 9,000 staff who the University of Glasgow has not paid today. It appears this is due to a banking error, but our members urgently need their wages, so we expect the university and its bank to fix this as soon as humanly possible.”

This year’s AGM was held on the 3rd July and was conducted on-line. Due to a mixture of factors (leave, workload etc.) the AGM was held in July contrary to our local rules which require the AGM to be held ‘before the end of June’. Committee believes that changes to the university leave year will lead to a persistent difficulty as staff endeavour to use up leave over the summer and proposes a change to local rules to accommodate the change (see Motion 1).

Committee would like to express thanks to Steve Rimmer who has stepped down from committee for personal reasons, and welcome Tom Pettinger who was elected to committee at the AGM.

Due to sickness and other unavoidable last minute absences the AGM was presented by Zak Hughes in his capacity as Acting Vice President. The Branch apologises to members for the enforced truncating of business that followed; business not covered during this shortened AGM will be covered at an upcoming EGM.

The PowerPoint presentation slides and minutes of the meeting can be found below..

Voters back using public money to bail out UK universities

Around three in four voters (74%) think the next government should step in with emergency funding for universities in financial crisis, reported Times Higher.

The poll, by Savanta on behalf of UCU, showed more than eight in 10 (81%) of those who intend to vote Labour and 77% of those who intend to vote Conservative back government intervention for institutions at risk of closure.

UCU general secretary Jo Grady told Times Higher: ‘This polling shows the British public wants the incoming government to step in and provide urgent financial support to any university at risk of going under. If elected into office next week, the Labour Party has rightly said higher education will be a day-one priority, but it also needs to realise that reckless market dogma has pushed universities to the brink and offer realistic solutions to the crisis. To stave off collapse, higher education must be publicly funded, anything less would be a historic failure.’

Unions look to improved employment relations under a Labour government

On the second anniversary of strikes which have seen hundreds of thousands of workers take industrial action union leaders reflected on industrial relations under the Tories and set out what they expect from Labour, reported The Evening Standard. Unions accused the Conservative Government of misjudging the public mood over strikes following an unprecedented wave of industrial action stretching back two years

Jo Grady told The Independent: ‘Two years on from the summer of discontent, workers across the country have made big gains, and our members have helped lead the way. The University and College Union mobilised like never before, winning not one but two national ballots, and forcing universities to agree to restore our retirement benefits in full. This is the biggest pensions win in British trade union history. Meanwhile, in further education, we took strike action for fair pay across England, winning pay awards of up to 12% at over 60 colleges. We now need to keep up the fight and make sure workers everywhere get their fair share.’

Up to 150 jobs at the University of Hull are at risk

Up to 150 jobs at the University of Hull are at risk as part of a £23m cuts plan because of a claimed drop in income, reported the BBC.

UCU regional official Julie Kelley told the BBC: The cuts would massively increase academic workloads for remaining staff, while degrading the student experience and the quality of teaching provision.’

College staff pass no confidence vote in CEO

Staff at five colleges have passed a vote of no confidence in a CEO in a long-running dispute over pay, reported the BBC. Members of UCU working at colleges which are part of Education Training Collective on Teesside, voted to say they had lost confidence in the group’s CEO Grant Glendinning.

UCU regional support official Chris Robinson told the BBC it was “unfortunate” industrial relations “had been degraded to such an extent” that union members felt they had no option but to move to a motion of no confidence.

“UCU now calls on the ETC governors to step in, show leadership and help prevent any further industrial action being taken,” he added.

500 job cut threat at University of Northampton

The University of Northampton has opened a voluntary severance scheme in an attempt to cut 500 jobs over a claimed £19m deficit due to a drop in international student recruitment, reported the BBC.

UCU Northampton branch secretary Sonya Andermahr told the BBC: ‘UCU’s view is that we broadly welcome the scheme as an alternative to compulsory redundancies. However, we feel that the terms of the scheme mean that it probably won’t have the desired effect of inducing enough staff to leave to make an appreciable difference to the university’s finances. We are seeking to improve the terms at a meeting with the university leadership team next week.’

Universities in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire have spent over £100m making more than 6,000 staff redundant since 2015, the BBC has found. UCU regional official Julie Kelley told the BBC universities had been “hit by the loss of international students”. She added that universities faced a “perfect storm” and it was “a long-running problem”. “We’ve seen some institutions borrow heavily to build fancy new buildings when money was cheap and they are now struggling with the repayments. The impact on staff is huge. Our members are worrying continually about whether the next round of cuts is going to affect them.”